Cratogeomys castanops (Baird, 1852)

Taxonomy and Distribution

The yellow-faced pocket gopher, Cratogeomys castanops, is a species of pocket gopher native to shortgrass prairies in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. This species lives north of the Southern Coahuila Filter-Barrier (SCFB).

Skull and Fossil Record

It has a small to medium-sized skull, and fossils of the Cratogeomys genus have been recorded from the pre-Pleistocene Benson Beds of Arizona.

Physical Appearance

The yellow-faced pocket gopher has a yellowish-brown coat, a short tail, and one deep groove running down the anterior middle of each incisor.

Reproductive Timing

Reproductive activity for yellow-faced pocket gophers begins in November, and reaches a peak in March and/or April.

Mating Behavior

During mating and copulation, males emit low guttural squeaks throughout their exploratory activities, then bite the female when body contact is made.

Juvenile Movement

Once young gophers are old enough to leave the nest, they travel through their mother’s burrows. They disperse from the parental burrow when they are nearly fully grown.

Primary Habitat Soil

Yellow-faced pocket gophers typically live in deep sandy or silty soils that are relatively free of rocks.

Habitat Competition with Geomys

Where another pocket gopher genus, Geomys, is present, Cratogeomys is restricted to denser, shallower, sometimes rockier soils.

Kansas Habitat Research Findings

Research conducted in Kansas found that unoccupied gopher tracts were largely areas with fine-textured soils planted with crops. The crops (corn, wheat, and grain sorghum) were harvested and disked annually, along with the roadside ditches adjacent to the cropland.

Habitat Destabilization Conclusion

Researchers concluded that pocket gophers cannot inhabit these areas because land-use practices have destabilized habitats, eliminating both refuge and dispersal corridors.

Predators

Small carnivorous mammals, large hawks, and owls prey on yellow-faced pocket gophers.